BASEBALL: SUBWAY SERIES

By JACK CURRY

Published: October 29, 2000

It has happened to Mariano Rivera for three straight years and he still cannot explain precisely how it feels to be on the pitcher's mound to collect the final out in a World Series game. There is something that explodes inside your body when you realize that eight months of sacrificing is being rewarded, he said, something that is indescribably blissful.

So when Mike Piazza pounded a fastball to center field on Thursday night, Rivera figured that it was happening again. Still, Rivera peered out to Bernie Williams, realized that Williams was easing under the ball and that is when it started. It is a rush of adrenaline, a feeling of relief, a gasp of joy. Maybe it is all three or maybe it is something more.

''It's such a great feeling,'' Rivera said. ''It's incredible. But I can't really explain it to you.''

Then Rivera smiled and said: ''I tell you what. It's the best feeling. Ever. And I've been there three times already. That's just a blessing.''

The differences between the Yankees and the other teams in baseball for three years have been many. They have excellent starters, they have superstars like Derek Jeter and Bernie Williams, they have stellar postseason performers like Paul O'Neill and Mike Stanton and they have a clever manager in Joe Torre.

But the most crucial factor and the greatest reason the Yankees are three-time champions, is Rivera. He is the infallible weapon that no other teams have. Several teams have terrific closers, but Rivera is the closer who never fails in the most pivotal situations.

''If we had Rivera in Atlanta, we would have won about three or four World Series,'' David Justice said. ''He's that good. I'm telling you, he's every bit of what they say about him and then some.''

The Braves have snared nine straight division titles since 1991, but they have managed one lonely championship in 1995. The Yankees have won four titles in the last five years and Justice, who played with Atlanta from 1989 to 1996, insisted that the difference is Rivera. If the Yankees have a lead late in a game, it is time for Rivera to uncork his nasty cut fastball and end it.

Luis Sojo added: ''When he's got his best stuff, he's unhittable. I've never seen a guy like that.''

As these compliments were relayed to Rivera in an almost empty clubhouse at Shea Stadium on Thursday, a smile creased his thin lips.

Rivera is a stoic assassin on the mound. With steely eyes and a face of unyielding determination, Rivera shows no emotion as he devours hitters.

''I don't feel invincible because I'm human,'' Rivera said. ''I feel when I go out there that I'm going to do very good. I'm going to give everything I got and get it done.''

The series against the Mets illustrated the importance of having a closer who does not falter. Once Armando Benitez blew a save in Game 1 and the Yankees stole a 4-3 victory, the Mets were trying to catch a runaway train. Rivera is 7 for 7 in save chances during the last three World Series, while opposing closers are 1 for 4.

Rivera has a strong setup tandem in Jeff Nelson and Stanton, but they are not as deadly as Rivera. In the postseason, Torre expands Rivera's role to use him in the eighth, too, heightening the pressure on opposing batters to produce runs in the first seven innings. Rivera, who turns 31 next month, is 4-0 with a 0.71 earned run average and 19 saves in the postseason.

''To have a guy like him is a tremendous psychological advantage,'' said Goose Gossage, the former Yankee who saved 302 games. ''There's a feeling of invincibility and being bullet-proof. Rivera has that going for him.''

Gossage, who has worked with Rivera for the last three spring trainings, has a favorite Rivera story from before he even met Rivera. The Yankees were in the 1995 division series and Rivera came in to pitch against the Mariners in Game 2. He pitched three solid innings and the Yankees won on Jim Leyritz's dramatic homer in the 15th inning. Gossage was jumping off his couch even before Leyritz went deep because he loved Rivera's cool approach.

''I saw the ice in his veins then,'' Gossage said. ''No emotion. Just focus, focus, focus. When he got through that, I said this kid is going to be awesome.''

Justice has an interesting Rivera story, too. Justice obviously knew about Rivera's cutter when Rivera faced Troy O'Leary during a game at Fenway Park last month. Justice figured O'Leary, a left-handed batter, had as much of a chance at driving the ball to right field as Jeter did of winning a Mayoral race in Boston, so he zoned out.

''I was hanging out looking at the fans,'' Justice said. ''There's no way he was going to pull it to me off Mo. He did and I missed it. I apologized to Mo. I told him I got so complacent playing behind him that it shocked me they could even hit one to the outfield.''

Ten months ago, Rivera disclosed that he planned to play four more years and then retire to become an evangelical minister. Rivera said God spoke to him at a game on July 16, 1999, and told him, ''I am the one who has you here,'' and he felt that meant he should retire and devote himself to a religious life.

But Rivera admitted that he has changed his mind about retiring after the 2003 season. Now Rivera will not put time constraints on his career because ''the Lord has blessed me and given me the opportunity to be on the best team in the city in baseball.''

Rivera said that he could be a minister to others while also being the best closer on earth.

The Yankees obviously have no problem with that. Even though Rivera is a year away from free agency and could command more than $10 million a year, he said he would not negotiate with any other teams because he only wants to play for the Yankees. Rivera already has a comfortable home and he does not want to leave. There is usually a party on the pitcher's mound in late October and you have to be out there to understand precisely how it feels.

''I'll be with the Yankees,'' Rivera said. ''I won't play with anybody else. I've got to enjoy this. I'm going to have a good winter and then get together with the Yankees. This is where I want to be.''

Photos: For Mariano Rivera, enjoying the adulation after his Game 5 save, the Yankees are his one and only team. (Photographs by Barton Silverman/The New York Times)